1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a financial planning system and method which optimizes credit opportunities for a user, and in particular, to a network-based method and system which allows a user to input their credit profile and financing objectives and provides a detailed group of financing options and information to the user including the ability to apply for financing on-line.
2. Related Art
The proliferation of global computing via global communication networks such as the Internet has facilitated many aspects of electronic financing applications. Among these applications are those which provide a user with the ability to review their current financial situation in light of other available financing opportunities.
For example, many banks and other lending institutions provide access to on-line financial calculators which provide a user with an estimated loan payment amount given a set of input criteria such as principal amount, repayment term and interest rate. Typically, these loan calculators are integrated as part of Internet webpages provided by the financial institution. Loan calculators, however, do not take into account a user's financing objectives, do not offer a comparison of the user's current situation with financing products designed to meet the user's objectives and do not offer a comprehensive view of the user's credit situation.
Other financial institutions offer product routers on their website which direct a user to a particular product based on a simple set of input criteria. For example, a user who indicates an interest in obtaining a credit card might be routed to a series of credit card related webpages which advertise the financial institution's credit card offerings.
Some websites are more sophisticated, routing a user to a product based on the user's specific credit request. For example, a user might input that she seeks an automotive finance loan for a 60 month term for a loan amount of $20,000 toward a vehicle whose purchase price is $25,000. The routing algorithm in the financial institution's web server directs the user to a product which meets the user's stated requirements. However, routing websites do not take into account the user's current credit situation along with the user's stated credit objectives to determine a particular set of products which meet all the user's requirements. Further, these websites do not provide comprehensive debt consolidation options which meet the user's objectives while simultaneously allowing the user to reduce the quantity of institutions and accounts providing financing.
Still other financial institutions provide websites which accept input criteria relating to the user's income and current expenses in order to calculate the extent to which the user can borrow additional funds. The user may be offered the opportunity to contact the financial institution to learn more about the financial institution's product offerings.
These systems, however, do not provide a user with a comprehensive view of their current credit situation by comparison with those products which are offered by the financial institution which will save the user money or lower the user's monthly payments. These systems also do not base product recommendation on a user's credit history or establish a recommendation based on meeting the user's objectives over a predetermined period of time. In addition, these systems do not allow the user to apply for credit or loans on-line within the same browsing session. Further, these systems do not allow the user to obtain detailed debt consolidation options which will save the user money as compared with the user's current credit profile.
In sum, it is desirable to have a system and method which allows a user to use a standard web browser to input their credit profile and credit objectives, view a comprehensive summary of their credit picture and receive a display generated using a set of business rules which matches the user's credit situation and objectives against current product offerings. The result provides a detailed comparison of the user's current loans and credit accounts with those offered by the service provider so that the user can easily compare the offerings. In addition, there is no system which allows a user to obtain additional information in the form of debt consolidation in which their current credit situation is compared against a consolidation package offered by the service provider based on the user's input. Finally, there is no financial planning system which offers the above-described desirable elements and which also allows a user to apply for credit and loans on-line during the same browsing session.